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Local studio documents Millvale library
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Those cameramen recently traveling around Millvale aren't filming the latest Hollywood movie, but residents and business people could star in a documentary about their town.
Dark Horizon Studios of Pittsburgh, made up of mostly 2011 college graduates, is donating time to capture the essence of the riverfront borough and the future Millvale Community Library.
The latter project began June 2 with the filming of student volunteers from Shaler Area School District painting walls at the library. The film is available for viewing on Dark Horizon's website, www.darkhorizonstudios.net.
Brian Wolovich, the library's founder and board president, expressed his appreciation for the studios' contribution.
"The film they made of the painting work is already greatly impacting our ability to tell the story of the truly grassroots, community-driven spirit of this journey we are on to create Millvale's first public library," he said.
Taylor Durham, 22, of Stanton Heights is Dark Horizon Studios' founder and CEO. He said the company consists of a core group of seven, four of whom graduated last year, two still in school, and one who graduated from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh in 2002.
"We are all from the area and didn't want to leave Pittsburgh," Mr. Durham said. "We started out doing weddings and small projects, then decided to make it our life's work," he said.
They also do graphic design and web design, but mostly video and film work to get experience. For now, they all have other jobs, and Mr. Durham is a videographer for the City of Pittsburgh. He said the first documentary about the library will be 15-20 minutes long, and tell about who is involved and how it got started. The goal is to make it available for use in securing funding, he said. The borough documentary will be 60 minutes, highlighting its past, present and future.
"We want to tell that story and compare it with Lawrenceville, a booming neighborhood, and Millvale, which is struggling," Mr. Durham said.
He hopes the film can be used in schools and the library for archival purposes and plans to submit it to film festivals.
"It's the fastest way to build an audience," he said of film and video.
Saturday, filming took place at the community gardens, and interviews were planned with the owners of Lincoln Pharmacy, Attic Records and other businesses. The film crew has been greeted warmly, he said. Most people are enthusiastic and talk about how the borough used to be, but a few are camera shy, he said. They plan to be in town until July 4.
First Published June 14, 2012 5:54 am
